


Cheap Takeout

by spicyboyfriend



Category: Pentagon (Korea Band)
Genre: Babysitting, Domestic Fluff, Fluff, Multi, No Plot/Plotless, OT3, Slice of Life, Tumblr Prompt, this fic is jus fluff and memes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-28
Updated: 2017-03-28
Packaged: 2018-10-12 05:20:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,723
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10482990
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spicyboyfriend/pseuds/spicyboyfriend
Summary: “So,” Hwitaek prefaced, pinching the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger and sighing deeply, “what you’re both telling me... is that none of us have our apartment keys?”





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [jinhoes](https://archiveofourown.org/users/jinhoes/gifts).



> OK first i just wanted to say det my old user on here was **sad_machine** , but i recently changed it to this one, **spicyboyfriend**! so hey hey it's still me, TJ, and im still writing pentagon fics i jus wanted to make sure i say det before i,,,, post,,,,,,
> 
> DLJGDFLKGJDFLGLFKDJG THIS TOOK ME SO DAMN LONG TO WRITE RIP
> 
> anyways here is,,,, ur gift fic chase sorry it took me forever im cryin alkgfslgkdflgkjfdglkj I HOPE U LIKE IT ????? if u dont am sorry will write u a better one when im better versed in ot3 since this is my first ot3 fic sldkgjdflkgjdlgj OKA Y OK
> 
> prompt from [here](http://imagineyourot3.tumblr.com/post/149397432237/jaclcfrost-somehow-between-three-people-w)

Living in an apartment with three people proved to have every day challenges that, in terms of typical two-people-relationships, just didn’t have to worry about. 

Going grocery shopping together meant  _ somebody  _ had to sit in the backseat. Most of the time, Hyunggu found himself being tossed in the backseat, because Hwitaek and Hyojong held the “we’re older than you” card over his head, which was  _ so  _ unfair, but Hyunggu sat in the backseat anyways and just made sure to kick their seats on “accident” more often than usual.

Hwitaek had the most chores in the house, as Hyojong and Hyunggu typically ducked out of them, even when Hwitaek would take the time to assign the chores fairly. Really, how hard was it to sweep the kitchen once a week? Especially with the mess Hyojong usually made in the morning, it should have been swept more often than  _ that!  _

But Hwitaek was too nice and didn’t have it in him to really discipline Hyojong and Hyunggu on the fine art of keeping the apartment clean, so he did most of it. Folding laundry was literal hell, considering Hyojong and Hyunggu wore similar (but not the  _ same) _ brand of underwear, and  _ god,  _ sometimes Hyunggu stole Hyojong’s and Hwitaek’s shirts and wore them, which caused a lot of confusion on both Hyojong’s and Hwitaek’s parts. Hwitaek didn’t even want to think about the pile of laundry that was undoubtedly waiting for him in the far off corner of their bedroom once they ended up back home.

And Hyojong? Hyojong was the worst of the three. While he definitely worked longer hours than the other two combined (to ensure they had spare money leftover after paying their bills and rent), he was really spoiled in every sense of the word. 

After a long day at work, while Hyojong’s body was still sore, Hyunggu and Hwitaek would (typically) end up pampering him to a point that bordered excessive. Hwitaek didn’t really mind, as he found it easy to show his love by spoiling Hyojong rotten, but Hyunggu was playing an entirely different game. He didn’t know how to do it casually, so he would just lay the praise on Hyojong thick, way too much, to the point of where Hwitaek warned Hyojong’s head would get too big if Hyunggu kept going (hint: shut up, Hyunggu).

So yes, a three person relationship was new and different, and they all did their best to keep up with one another in their own special way. It worked so far, as all of their fights had been related to menial things around the house, and hardly even counted as  _ fights,  _ so much as they were general disagreements. 

But this, by far, was their largest one yet.

Hyunggu stood outside of their apartment, jiggling the doorknob multiple times before sighing and turning around to Hwitaek and Hyojong, who were both exasperated and tired from their long day out all together. 

Hyunggu had been the one to suggest it— their date out, he meant. It felt like it had been months since the last time they had properly spent time together, where they weren’t just rushing to eat cereal and run out of the door, rushed kisses on cheeks and quiet apologies that they couldn’t be together for longer, though they were practically attached at the hip when they came back from work. Hyunggu had even started looking for a job, as his studies were taking up less and less time, which meant more free time for... well, anything else besides sitting at home, wondering when Hwitaek and Hyojong were planning on coming back from work. Hwitaek’s job had weird hours of the day, as he was a vocal trainer, a job offered to him through school, and Hyojong was busy working at his family’s store to ever really have time for schooling (“Later,” Hyojong would always say, as if he would obviously have time later for something as serious as school).

“So,” Hwitaek prefaced, pinching the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger and sighing deeply, “what you’re both telling me... is that none of us have our apartment keys?”

Hyunggu nodded, running his fingers through his hair as Hyojong stifled a tired laugh behind his hand. Hwitaek punched Hyojong’s arm, clearly irritated by his amusement with the situation, though Hyunggu had to admit it was  _ a little  _ funny that all three of them had three separate sets of keys, and yet still locked themselves out of their apartment.

“That doesn’t make any  _ sense,”  _ Hwitaek continued. “One of us had to have had our keys to lock the door before we left. Who locked the door?”

“I did,” Hyojong said, “with Hyunggu’s keys.”

“Hyunggu-yah, where did you put your keys?” Hwitaek said. Hyunggu frowned and furrowed his brows.

“Hyojong didn’t give them back to me after he locked the door!” Hyunggu said defensively. Hyojong squinted his eyes at Hyunggu, before pointing his finger at him accusingly.

“No, I gave them back to you! I threw them at you while we were walking to the restaurant.”

“Oh,” Hyunggu said, feigning shock by slapping his forehead with his hand, “how could I forget when you chucked my keys at my back with the speed of a bullet?”

“Don’t be such a baby,” Hyojong teased, Hyunggu fighting back a smile and instead sticking his tongue out towards Hyojong, who reciprocated the action.

“Focus!” Hwitaek broke the conversation between the two. “Hyunggu, what did you do with your keys after Hyojong threw them at you?”

Hyunggu hummed, tapping his finger against his chin before he said, “well, I thought they were in my pocket.”

“You  _ thought  _ they were in your pocket?”

“Hey, don’t get that tone with me,” Hyunggu retorted. “If you two are so old and wise, where are your keys, huh? I mean, since I’m the  _ baby  _ and all, you two should be more responsible!”

“I don’t think either of us claimed to be wise,” Hyojong said, and Hwitaek smacked his shoulder again. “You’re gonna make me bruise, you know! I’m like a peach.”

“A spoiled peach,” Hwitaek countered. “Okay, okay, before we get distracted again, we need to figure out what happened to our keys. All of us,  _ not  _ just Hyunggu,” he corrected Hyojong, who was ready to make a face at Hyunggu. “Hyojong, you first. What happened to your keys?”

“Why am I first?” Hyojong said. Hwitaek huffed.

“Just go first. When did you see them last?”

With a quiet sigh, Hyojong leaned back against the opposite wall, hands stuffed in the pockets of his leather jacket as he rocked back and forth on either foot. Hwitaek waited, probably trying to figure out where his own set of keys went. Suddenly, Hyojong snapped his fingers and let out a noise of realization.

“Okay, okay, it went like this.”

  
  


**

  
  


Hyojong distinctly remembered waking up that same morning to Hwitaek and Hyunggu shouting from their hallway. It was a rude way to wake someone up, Hyojong thought bitterly, as he stretched his limbs out and sighed as Hwitaek called out for Hyojong. Before Hyojong could even think about answering Hwitaek, the door to their bedroom burst open, Hyunggu red-faced and... soaking wet?

“The hell happened to you?” Hyojong said, rubbing his eyes to make sure he wasn’t seeing things. Hyunggu panted quietly, and then gestured out towards the hallway.

“One of the pipes in the bathroom burst again. There’s water  _ everywhere,”  _ Hyunggu said. Hyojong groaned, turning over in bed and pulling a blanket over his body instead, grabbing a pillow for extra measure as he put it over his head.

“I’m still asleep, leave me alone,” Hyojong said, and Hyunggu huffed louder.

“Hyung!”

“What?” Hwitaek shouted from the hall.

“Not you!” Hyunggu replied just as loud. “But you know what, Hyojong-hyung won’t wake up!”

“This entire apartment is gonna be flooded if he doesn’t get his ass out of bed.” Hwitaek’s voice was closer, and before Hyojong knew it, he felt the pillow and the blanket jerked out of his grip and thrown on the floor before something sopping wet wrapped around his body, pulling him out of bed.

“Ugh, gross!” Hyojong thrashed, kicking his legs out as Hwitaek carried him into the hallway. “You’re soaked!”

“Yeah, and you’re gonna get soaked too,” Hwitaek said, dropping Hyojong on the rug they had just outside of their bathroom, his toes squishing in the drenched material of the rug as he cringed and felt a shiver run along his body at the sensation alone. “The water hasn’t stopped spraying for ten minutes, and neither of us have any idea what to do.”

Hyojong sighed, rubbing his forehead with his hand before he put his hands up to quell Hwitaek and Hyunggu.

“Look, go get changed into a dry pair of clothes, and then go call the landlord. He has to shut the water off for the apartment.”

“The entire apartment?!” Hwitaek said incredulously. “I still haven’t showered!”

“Me neither, hyung,” Hyunggu butted in, “and my hair is nasty greasy, so there’s no way they can shut off the water for the whole apartment.”

“I haven’t done the dishes,” Hwitaek continued. “We can’t do that.”

“Okay, either the water is turned off or we flood the entire apartment,” Hyojong said, “but I haven’t showered either, and I’m pretty gross from work last night. Hui, what time do you have to go into work?”

“I have to leave in an hour,” Hwitaek answered, glancing at the clock.

“And I have to be at the shop in forty minutes,” Hyojong continued, then pointed at Hyunggu. “What do you need to shower for?”

“I’m going job hunting!” Hyunggu exclaimed happily. Hyojong nodded, giving Hyunggu a quick smile of approval before he pursed his lips to the side and hummed.

“Okay, well... if we  _ did  _ shut the water off in the apartment, the bathroom in our bedroom would still work.” Hyojong pointed in the general direction of the open door of their bathroom. “The pipes in that bathroom aren’t connected to the rest, remember?”

“Oh, that’s right!” Hwitaek said. “But we have to leave soon, and....” Hwitaek trailed off as Hyojong turned to grab at the back of his shirt, tugging it off over his head. “You know I hate taking showers with you!”

“That’s tough,” Hyojong called over his shoulder. “Hyunggu, let’s shower together and get it out of the way. Hui-hyung can go to work and stink.”

Hyunggu laughed, running up to Hyojong’s side and tugging his shirt off. He tossed it in the general direction of the hamper, Hwitaek running after the two of them and cleaning up their messy trail of clothes.

“Someone still has to call the landlord!” Hwitaek said, though he was sure his voice was drowned out by the sound of the water already running. Hyunggu poked his head out from around the doorframe, smiling at Hwitaek.

“Hyojong-hyung said you better hurry and call before there’s no hot water.”

Hwitaek let out a huff of annoyance, going back and forth as he heard Hyojong humming, followed by Hyunggu nearly slipping and bursting into laughter. Hwitaek ran to his phone in the living room, unbuttoning his shirt on the way there and leaving it in a messy heap just beside the couch.

  
  


**

  
  


“And then I left my key under the mat for the plumber, since we were all going to be out,” Hyojong said, pointing his finger at Hwitaek before poking his nose and smiling. Hwitaek didn’t appear the slightest bit amused.

“Okay,” Hwitaek said, “but did you have to mention the fact that we showered together? Why couldn’t you just say you left your key under the mat for the plumber?”

“Well, the shower part was fun for me.” Hyojong laughed, Hyunggu stifling a giggle behind his hand as Hwitaek sighed and ran his fingers through his hair.

“Wasn’t fun for me. You know I hate those lukewarm showers you take.”

“They’re not  _ that  _ bad,” Hyunggu said.

“They’re  _ so  _ bad,” Hwitaek replied overdramatically. “But that takes care of where  _ your  _ key went, at least,” Hwitaek said.

“Should we be worried that some strange plumber has a key to the apartment?” Hyunggu pointed out.

“Yes, we really should be,  _ but,”  _ Hwitaek paused, “I just remembered when I last had  _ my  _ keys, so we need to figure out what happened to them before we think about that.”

Hyojong walked over to Hyunggu’s side, sliding down beside him and leaning his head on Hyunggu’s shoulder as Hwitaek continued to pace the hall. How Hwitaek had all this energy after walking around all day was astounding to both Hyunggu and Hyojong, who were holding back yawns and teary eyes before Hwitaek bit his lip and furrowed his brows.

“I think it was when we babysat for Heeyoung next door,” Hwitaek admitted, sheepish.

“Damn, that was like... a week ago, Hui!” Hyojong said. “If I were closer to you, I’d flick you!”

“I meant to mention it right after I lost them!” Hwitaek said defensively, pouting his lips. “I guess I just forgot.”

“That’s why you’ve been asking for my car keys every time we went out,” Hyojong said in sudden realization, a scoff escaping his lips as Hyunggu grinned and rolled his eyes. “I can’t believe you. You lost your keys before I even lost mine!”

“Okay, but I need to remember when I last saw them,” Hwitaek said. “Just let me think. I remember....”

  
  


**

  
  


Hwitaek was a very easily persuaded man, and by that, he meant it took almost no literal effort on anybody’s part to convince Hwitaek of doing anything others would consider “too nice” or “excessive”. 

Hwitaek couldn’t even count on both hands how many times he had done favors for his own friends, how many times he had helped Shinwon out when the two had shifts together, and Shinwon was  _ ridiculously  _ late because he “missed the bus” again, when he really just overslept or was doing the walk of shame from somebody’s house and had to shower before he came into work (because glitter that came from god-knows-where was the absolute last accessory a vocal trainer should have when he came into work).

Really, Hwitaek knew he was far too kind for his own good, bordering on being a pushover when it came to anybody, especially Hyojong and Hyunggu, but  _ this?  _ This really took the cake more than any other situation ever could have.

“Noona! How are you doing?”

It was really a conversation that started off normal. Heeyoung, their neighbor just across the hall stood at her mailbox, her baby swaddled in the blanket tied across her chest as she looked through her mail and glanced up at Hwitaek with a wide grin on her face.

“Hwitaek!” She set her mail down in her purse, lifting it to her side as she ensured the blanket was tight enough, then put her arm around her baby against her chest just to be safe. “I’m well, thank you for asking.”

“You look a little tired,” Hwitaek commented, but quickly corrected himself, “but your complexion is really bright!”

“Ah, nice save,” she teased. “It’s alright, I know I’m looking awful as of late. I haven’t had a chance to rest since Jaehwa was born.”

“How old is he now? Three months?”

“Four, actually,” Heeyoung said, just as Jaehwa began to fuss, quiet whines escaping the bundle of blankets as she tried to hush him, but to no avail. “Lately he’s been very colicky. I don’t know if you’ve heard him, but he just won’t stop crying for hours, and I haven’t been able to sleep or do anything really. I can’t remember the last time I went grocery shopping.”

“Colicky...?”

“Oh!” Heeyoung said, then hit her own forehead. “Sorry, sometimes I forget not everyone deals with babies. It’s, like, when a baby won’t stop crying for a really long time. He’ll just cry for hours and hours, and won’t stop until he just tires himself out,” Heeyoung said, turning to Jaehwa, who was now beginning to cry. “Poor thing.”

“That sounds  _ awful,”  _ Hwitaek said without thinking, mentally kicking himself, although Heeyoung was giggling.

“It’s hard, but I mainly feel bad for him. The doctor said it should pass in a few months, but... oh, I just haven’t had the heart to get a babysitter to watch him. I’m afraid of leaving him with anybody, because they’ll have to deal with his crying. I don’t know if anyone would want to do that, even for a lot of money!” Heeyoung sighed. “And my father’s been paying a lot of my bills since Sungmin left. I want to look for a job, but Jaehwa is still too young. A-and I’m sorry, I don’t mean to dump this all out on you. I haven’t talked to anyone in a while, so I think I just started rambling without thinking.”

“It’s okay!” Hwitaek exclaimed, nearly drowned out by Jaehwa’s outright wails by this point. He nearly cringed, but held back the expression and continued speaking instead. “Uhm, what if I offered to help as much as I could?”

Heeyoung looked taken aback, but shook her head quickly. “I could never ask you to do something like that. Really, I think I just needed to get it out of my system for a moment. I’m okay now!”

“I wasn’t offering because you rambled.” Hwitaek smiled. “I’m offering because you seem a little tired, and I’m sure with being a single mom, you’d like a night for yourself.”

“Well, yes, but—”

“How about sometime this week?” Hwitaek continued, and Heeyoung flushed in embarrassment, her cheeks tinged red as Hwitaek tapped his finger against his chin. “I think I have a day off on Friday.”

“Oh, Hwitaek, I don’t think I could really let you stay home with Jaehwa alone. He is a lot to handle at once, and.... Ah, the idea of having a night for myself is really nice, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it.”

“Oh!” Hwitaek shouted suddenly, startling Heeyoung and Jaehwa at the same time before apologizing. Heeyoung smiled and tried to quell Jaehwa again, though he had already started crying even harder than before. “Hyojong has Friday night off too, and Hyunggu doesn’t have anything to do. What if all three of us helped out?”

Heeyoung took a moment to think about it, her brows knitted together with hesitation before she hummed and pursed her lips. 

“Are you sure it isn’t too much to ask...?”

“Of course not!” Hwitaek said. “And that way, there’s three of us helping each other out.”

Heeyoung paused, her lips still quirked with thought and apprehension, but Hwitaek set his hand down on her shoulder and squeezed reassuringly.

“Really, we’d like to help. I’m sure Hyojong and Hyunggu will be understanding.”

Heeyoung smiled, tears budding in the corners of her eyes as he used one arm to bring Hwitaek into a warm embrace, while she used the other to keep Jaehwa in her arms, even though he was blatantly crying now, face red and tears streaming down his face. Hwitaek stared at Jaehwa for a moment.

“Jeez, he really is crying hard, huh?”

“Yeah, he’s got some pair of lungs, that’s for sure,” Heeyoung said, starting for her purse and tucking it under her arm. “Thank you again, Hwitaek. I’ll pay all three of you for watching him, and I won’t even be out long. Just a few hours. Just come by on Friday at 6:00, okay?”

“Okay.” Hwitaek nodded, watched as Heeyoung started towards the elevator and Jaehwa’s wailing faded away. He sighed, shoulders falling forward with his exhale of breath, before he rubbed the palms of his hands into his eyes and damned himself for, as always, being far too kind for his own good.

  
  
  


“I still cannot believe you.”

Hyojong was the first one to break the deafening silence that had settled upon them since Hwitaek had mentioned the fact that they would be babysitting completely last minute, an entire ten minutes before Heeyoung had told him to come by. It wasn’t like Hwitaek was avoiding telling them! It was just....

Well, actually, he was avoiding it. There was no way around it. He was completely avoiding telling Hyojong and Hyunggu, because he couldn’t find it in himself to do it, but he also couldn’t bring himself to tell Heeyoung that things had changed, especially after she had nearly  _ cried  _ in front of him at the idea of having a night for herself. What kind of a person would Hwitaek have been to offer her a chance at a night out, only to tear it out of her hands and pretend like it wasn’t a big deal?

“Don’t be so overdramatic, Hyojong,” Hwitaek chided from his spot in front of Heeyoung’s apartment. “It’s not so bad, taking care of a baby.”

“Need I remind you that one of us is still practically a baby?”

“Yeah, Hui,” Hyunggu continued before he furrowed his brows and looked over at Hyojong. “Wait, excuse me. Are you referring to me?”

“I would  _ never,”  _ Hyojong replied, Hyunggu mocking him in a high tone and frowning. 

“I don’t mind taking care of Jaehwa. I’m just confused about why you didn’t tell us sooner. Yuto really wanted to come over and hang out,” Hyunggu said.

“Yeah, and Changgu said he was planning on inviting Hongseok and Yan An if we all hung out,” continued Hyojong.

“Look, look,” Hwitaek lifted his hands in front of him, “I’ll make it up to both of you if you just... help me tonight, okay? I really will! I’ll figure something out to make it worthwhile.”

“I mean, you already do all the chores around the house,” Hyunggu pointed out with a small smile tugging at the corners of his lips. “What else could you possibly do?”

Hwitaek pursed his lips, brows furrowed in hesitance before he finally sighed and spoke. “I won’t make you two watch my shows with me for a month.”

“Whoa,” was all Hyojong and Hyunggu could say.

“He’s serious,” Hyojong said, and Hyunggu nodded.

“Deathly.”

“Oh, shut up,” Hwitaek huffed. “Are you two going to help me or not?”

“We’re here, aren’t we?” Hyojong said, gesturing towards Heeyoung’s door. “Knock already, she probably heard us out here.”

Hwitaek brought his knuckles down on the door three times, waiting as he took a step back and Hyunggu nudged him forward, since he was the one that had gotten them all roped into this mess.

The door swung open, Heeyoung appearing behind it with a smile on her face. She moved to the side, welcoming the three of them into her apartment. 

It was almost identical to their own in layout, but in terms of decorations and furniture, it was clear that she put some more thought into her choices. Paintings decorated the hallway as they walked in, and the door to the bathroom was actually wide open, spotless and clean. Hyunggu stopped to marvel at it, poking his head inside and smelling vanilla. Fucking  _ weird.  _

“You three have no idea how much I appreciate the offer. Here’s just some technical stuff before I leave. Jaehwa is asleep,” Heeyoung paused in the kitchen and pointed to the counter, a small white paper sitting on the counter. “My number is there, and my friend’s number is also on there, in case I don’t answer.”

Heeyoung continued while Hwitaek looked around the apartment, shamelessly taking in the beautiful decor. Hyojong’s jaw had long since dropped, touching any glass item he could on his way in, and now huddled close to the mantle in her living room. Did they even  _ have  _ one of those? Hyojong poked a small figurine, watched it tip back and forth before he tapped his finger on the head of it and stopped it in place.

“I know you three aren’t used to being around a baby, but if you could try to keep it down to, like, a dull roar, Jaehwa should sleep until I get back,” Heeyoung smiled with her words, eyes crinkling in the corner with her grin as she pointed to another room off to the side of her bedroom. “Jaehwa sleeps in the room across from the bathroom. His diapers and things are in there. His formula is on the counter, and the directions are written right next to the cans, so... that should be about it?” Heeyoung paused and tapped her fingers across her chin. “Besides thanking you all again for doing this, I think we’re okay!”

Hwitaek nodded, and Heeyoung threw her arms around his shoulders, squeezing tightly before picking up her purse and slinging it over her shoulder. 

Heeyoung really was a striking woman, and why her fiance decided to leave her when she was pregnant with Jaehwa, Hwitaek would never understand. Her family was more than supportive towards her after he left, but Hwitaek was sure she received more than her fair share of odd looks in public for being a single mom. Gossip like that tended to go around quick. 

Part of Hwitaek suspected that was why Heeyoung wasn’t very judgmental when it came to their relationship. After all,  _ two  _ men in a relationship had enough stigma. Adding another person in the mix was asking for judgment, but Heeyoung was kind and understanding, didn’t really question much other than their names and things like that.

“Remember, call me if there’s any issues!” Heeyoung interrupted Hwitaek’s train of thought as she pulled her shoes on and stood in the doorway. “I’ll come home right away.”

The door closed behind her, Hyunggu and Hyojong moving away from their points of interest and standing in the living room, waiting for Hwitaek to say something. Hwitaek turned to them both, eyes wary and expression unsettled.

“Were either of you listening to her?”

Both Hyojong and Hyunggu sighed in disappointment.

Reasonably thinking, it shouldn’t have been hard to keep quiet in the apartment. His crying shouldn’t have been an issue, as long as Hyojong didn’t scream, Hyunggu didn’t antagonize, and Hwitaek didn’t lecture them both for being too loud.

Well, Hwitaek did say reasonably, not realistically.

  
  
  


In the end, it was Hwitaek who really screwed them over, and ended up waking up Jaehwa. Not that he meant to! He had been doing well all night long at not yelling at Hyojong and Hyunggu for roughhousing too close to Jaehwa’s room, or for raiding Heeyoung’s refrigerator, even though they claimed as babysitters, it was their right (how old were they again?). 

What ended up being the “killing noise”, so to speak, was when Hwitaek turned on a drama in the living room. Hyojong and Hyunggu were eating, talking about their schedules for the following week. For Hyunggu, it was always the same— school, homework, looking for a job, maybe every now and again going out with friends, but never anything too crazy. The fleeting mention of Hyojong getting another tattoo made its way into the conversation, but Hwitaek was only half listening. He was more intent on paying attention to his drama, a smile unwittingly tugging at the corners of his lips as he pulled the pillow in his lap closer to his chest. If Hyojong or Hyunggu caught him like this, they’d make fun of him for hours to come.

In Hwitaek’s defense, all he did was laugh! Maybe it was a little louder than it should have been.... Maybe a  _ lot  _ louder than it should have been. It was just so easy for Hwitaek to forget that he wasn’t at home, that it wasn’t  _ their  _ apartment they were sitting in, while Hyojong and Hyunggu talked in the dining room, and later on, would join Hwitaek on the couch to tease him for crying over a drama, the way they always did.

But that laugh was all it took to silence Hyunggu and Hyojong, followed by high, faint noises from Jaehwa’s room as Hyunggu rose from his seat and looked at Hwitaek from around the corner.

“Are you serious?” was all Hyunggu could say, before the loud sound of wailing from Jaehwa’s room filled the once silent atmosphere of the apartment. Hwitaek nervously rose from the couch, twiddling his fingers in front of him as Hyojong peered down the hallway. They both turned to Hwitaek after another moment of Jaehwa’s cries filling the apartment.

“Well?” Hyojong said, gesturing down the hall. “Go get him!”

Hwitaek nodded, too nervous to disagree or even get annoyed with Hyojong’s tone of voice, and started down the short walk down the hall.

Babies were...  _ weird,  _ Hwitaek decided as he stared down at Jaehwa in his crib, his tiny hands swinging at his sides as Hwitaek felt Hyunggu clap his hand down on his shoulder.

“Do you know how to hold a baby?” Hyunggu said. Hwitaek furrowed his brows at him.

“Of course I do. I’ve seen Heeyoung pick him up,” Hwitaek argued vaguely, but still made no moves to do so. Hyunggu rolled his eyes and grabbed Hwitaek, turning him around so his arms made a small cradle.

“Don’t move,” Hyunggu said, then turned to the crib and lifted Jaehwa out from the crib carefully. When Hyunggu set Jaehwa down in Hwitaek’s arms, still crying and red faced, and pulled away, Hwitaek let out a breath he didn’t realize he had been holding, like all of his breath had been knocked out of his chest all at once. That was... embarrassing? Weird? Weird was probably a better word. Hyunggu made a face between a grimace and a frown.

“He’s still crying.”

“Yeah,” Hwitaek said flatly.

“You should change him,” Hyunggu said.

“Change him?”

“His diaper?” Hyunggu said. “Hyung, have you ever taken care of a baby in your life?”

Hwitaek cringed, and Hyunggu let out a noise of disbelief.

“Are you telling me you’ve never taken care of a baby, but you volunteered yourself to  _ take care of a baby?” _ Hyunggu nearly shouted over Jaehwa’s crying. Hwitaek nodded without any form of hesitation, watched as Hyunggu scooped up Jaehwa in his arms and set him down on the changing table just across the room from his crib. “Go help Hyojong make him a bottle, hyung.” Hyunggu made sure to use a tone of voice that said he wasn’t angry or upset with Hwitaek. 

Hwitaek nodded and walked out of Jaehwa’s room, to the kitchen, where Hyojong was furrowing his brows at the directions on the paper Heeyoung left beside the cans of formula.

“Do babies really eat this powder?” Hyojong said incredulously. Hwitaek knew  _ this  _ much at least. He had seen Heeyoung make Jaehwa a bottle once before, so he could help with this part, at least. “It’s gross.”

“Did you taste it?” Hwitaek said. Hyojong hesitated. “How?”

“Like Fun Dip,” Hyojong answered. “You know, like, I licked my pinkie and stuck it in there.”

“Oh my god, you have no shame.”

“I wanted to see if it tasted like milk!” Hyojong said, defensive.

“Did it taste like milk?”

“It tastes like powder. What else is it supposed to taste like?”

“Hyojong, just get some water to mix it with.”

“You’re supposed to mix this with water? Oh my god, that makes so much sense.”

  
  
  


Hyunggu was the first to flop down on the couch, Jaehwa in his bouncer as he continued to cry, after nearly an hour of the three of them doing their absolute best to calm him down. Hyojong had gone first— made faces at Jaehwa in an attempt to make him laugh, only for Jaehwa to kick his foot against the bottom of Hyojong’s chin, forcing him to quite literally bite his tongue. That was a mess in and of itself, as he held his face over the sink and spat out blood for twenty minutes while Hwitaek tried to calm Jaehwa.

“This is getting ridiculous,” Hyunggu said. “He hasn’t stopped crying since he woke up.”

“Yeah, thith ith a meth,” Hyojong lisped, though it was clear anything he said was skewed by his bitten tongue, so he promptly closed his mouth.

“I mean, Heeyoung mentioned he cried a little bit more than normal, but... well, I don’t know what she does to get him to stop crying!”

“I’m sure she didn’t think he was going to wake up while she was gone, but since you  _ laughed,”  _ Hyunggu said it as if it was a sin, “he woke up and now he won’t stop.”

“I know,” Hwitaek said, acknowledging his fault in the problem. He ran his fingers through his hair. “Maybe... I don’t know. Maybe make up another bottle?”

“It already ate,” Hyojong said, to which Hyunggu corrected him with a tired,  _ “he,  _ not  _ it,  _ hyung,” though Hwitaek wasn’t really sure Hyojong cared either way after Jaehwa kicked him in the chin.

“Diaper change?”

“Hyunggu jus’ did that ten minutes ago,” Hyojong continued. “I think we should call Heeyoung.”

“No!” Hwitaek said, hopping up from his spot at the dinner table and grabbing up the paper they had passed around earlier to look at the numbers written down. “No, we’re not going to call her.”

“Hyung—”

“If you two really don’t want to stay anymore, that’s okay,” Hwitaek began, stuffing the paper in his pocket. “Really, I understand. I know this was all mainly my idea. So... it’s okay!”

Whatever sort of resolve Hyojong and Hyunggu had to leave melted away when they noticed the expression of thought on Hwitaek’s face.

“I really want her to have one night for herself, so I’m going to stay,” Hwitaek said, nodding his head and sitting down on the couch in front of Jaehwa, despite the fact that Jaehwa was crying just as hard, if not harder, than he was before Hwitaek made this resolution to stay. Hyojong sighed, running his fingers through his hair before Hyunggu nudged Hwitaek and caught his attention from beside him on the couch.

“God, you’re really the worst influence in this relationship,” Hyunggu said. 

Hyojong grabbed Hwitaek’s keys from the dinner table, shaking them in the air before he said, “at least let me grab my phone charger. It’s almost dead from when we were trying to play lullabies....” 

Hyojong trailed off in the middle of his sentence as he noticed Hyunggu and Hwitaek both looking to Jaehwa with their eyes widened, and the apartment  _ silent  _ for the first time since he had woken up. It only lasted a moment, as Jaehwa burst into tears again, before Hyunggu lifted his hands and made a rapid gesture towards the keys. Hyojong threw them at Hyunggu, practically hitting him in the face before he shook them in front of Jaehwa’s face. Like magic, he stopped crying almost immediately, eyes finally fluttered open as he reached his hands out towards the keys. 

“Are you serious?” Hyojong lisped.

“Shake them again,” Hwitaek urged, unconsciously setting his hand down on Hyunggu’s thigh as he scooted forward. Hyunggu did it again, and this time, Jaehwa let out something like a squeak that could’ve been a laugh.

“Oh my god,” Hyunggu said, shaking the keys again and earning another gurgle of laughter before Hyojong sat down on the  _ other  _ side of Hyunggu. Now all three of them stared at Jaehwa as he laughed and reached out for the keys, Hyunggu playfully pulling them out of reach. “I can’t believe this.”

“So... do we just have to keep playing with the keys until he falls asleep?” Hwitaek said. Hyunggu shrugged.

“I will  _ so  _ do that if it means he won’t cry again.”

Hyojong cooed, leaning in towards Jaehwa again. “He’s kind of cute when he’s not crying for an hour straight.” Reaching his index finger out and poking Jaehwa’s cheek, he smiled when Jaehwa took his finger, pulling it to his mouth and gumming at the tip of his finger.

“Hyojong, that’s gross,” Hwitaek chided, though Hyojong just snorted. “You haven’t even washed your hands.”

“He’s just gumming at it, calm down— ow, fuck!” Hyojong jumped back, Jaehwa bursting into laughter again as Hyojong held his finger up. “He bit me!”

They let Hyojong marvel over the small bite mark on his finger before Hyunggu and Hwitaek both curled in on themselves with laughter, Hyojong snatching the keys from Hyunggu’s hand and shaking them for Jaehwa, despite the fact that Jaehwa had already injured him twice that night.

  
  


**

  
  


“Hyojong!” Hwitaek said, now sitting beside Hyojong on the floor in front of their apartment. Hyunggu was leaning his head on Hyojong’s shoulder, trying not to fall asleep. His feet hurt, and his back hurt, and he felt like he was getting a headache, though he couldn’t tell if that was just from all the thinking he was doing in a desperate attempt to remember what he had done with his keys. “You were the last one with my keys!”

“Huh,” Hyojong said, tapping his fingers against his chin in thought. “Guess I was.”

“Well? What did you do with them?” Hwitaek replied impatiently. Hyojong hummed in thought once more before he shrugged.

“I must’ve left them there.”

“You’ve lost two sets of keys already!” Hwitaek continued. “Two house keys!”

“Oops?” Hyojong said. “C’mon, I was just so tired by the time Heeyoung came back. The kid kicked me and bit me, I just wanted to come back and sleep.”

“And Heeyoung isn’t home,” Hwitaek sighed. “She said she had something to do with her family tonight. Agh, this is so hard.”

“‘S okay, hyung,” Hyunggu said from beside Hyojong, tapping his hand against Hyojong’s thigh. “I’m the one that had my keys last.”

“Oh, right,” Hwitaek said, as if he suddenly remembered that Hyunggu also had a house key. “Do you remember what happened to it?”

Hyunggu nodded, though he could feel his head starting to hurt less, and was moreso focused on the fact that he wanted to be inside of the apartment already. He wanted to be sitting on the couch, leaning on Hwitaek’s shoulder and falling asleep while Hyojong ate some popcorn beside him and they ended up huddled together on the couch, because it was hardly big enough for two people, let alone three.

“I had them when we were walking home.”

  
  


**

  
  


Hyunggu had his keys more recently than Hyojong and Hwitaek combined, considering Hyojong had their keys last this morning, and Hwitaek a week back, but Hyunggu had them on the walk home.

Their dates were always really simple, which was something Hyunggu appreciated. Overly planned dates and things like that weren’t really Hyunggu’s idea of a good time, and he knew Hyojong and Hwitaek were both tired from work, so really, it worked out for all three of them to just go out and eat dinner together and talk about their days. Hyunggu always liked to sit in between Hyojong and Hwitaek at dinner, despite the fact that Hwitaek complained about the lack of space in the booth, but always gave Hyojong and Hyunggu more space anyways.

It was nice, Hyunggu thought, being able to sit in the middle of them and hold their hands, both or one at a time, and just... enjoy it? That sounded ridiculous, but sometimes Hyunggu needed the reminder that they really did like him, that they  _ really  _ wanted him in the relationship, and weren’t just taking pity on him.

Hwitaek and Hyojong were together before Hyunggu was ever a part of the picture, truth be told. Hyunggu met them through a mutual friend, and, at the time, really had no interest in a relationship. As a recently graduated student, the appeal just wasn’t there. But he did like to spend lots of time with Hwitaek and Hyojong, so much that it bordered on being excessive. There wasn’t necessarily an obligation to, though! Hyunggu never felt like he  _ had  _ to hang out with the two of them, but like they welcomed him into their apartment, and he just... felt safe. At home. Hyojong and Hwitaek made Hyunggu feel at home, no matter the circumstance.

That being said, Hyojong and Hwitaek being together before Hyunggu always made him a little... scared? Fearful? Paranoid wasn’t the right word, but it was something bordering the lines of fear and paranoia where he just felt insecure in his position in the relationship. Hyojong worked to the bone every day at his parent’s shop, and Hwitaek put all of his energy into being a vocal trainer and trying to finish up school, and Hyunggu... well, he was so busy in university that he had no time for anything other than homework and spending time with Hyojong and Hwitaek, or sometimes with his friends when he felt like going out. 

He wanted to get a job! He really did! Most places didn’t want a university student, and that was what really messed with his chances when he applied. Hyojong said he could get Hyunggu a job at the family store, but Hyunggu didn’t feel right mooching off of Hyojong’s family like that.

“Hey,” Hyojong said, catching Hyunggu’s attention as they stepped out of the restaurant, bellies full and smiles on their faces— except for Hyunggu’s. “What’s wrong?”

Hyunggu let out a quiet hum, only pursing his lips with a thin smile before he shook his head.

“Nothing, hyung!”

Hwitaek clicked his tongue, looking over to Hyunggu.

“You’ve been distracted all night.”

Hyunggu faltered, but only for a moment, before he shook his head again.

“Really, I’m okay.”

“Are you thinking of stupid stuff again?” Hyojong said, the three of them starting down the sidewalk with their hands stuffed in their pockets. The restaurant was only a little ways away from the apartment, and Hwitaek said he wanted to stop by a corner store to pick up ice cream. They didn’t have to rush home or worry about traffic, which was bumper to bumper beside them in the street.

“Define “stupid stuff”,” Hyunggu said, snorting when Hyojong playfully knocked his fist against his cheek.

“You are, aren’t you? Overthinking stuff, I mean.”

Hyunggu frowned, brows raising as Hyojong and Hwitaek both smiled triumphantly. “God, shut up,” he dragged his words out, clearly dissatisfied that they had figured him out, though it wasn’t like he was doing a very good job at hiding it.

“You know, if you’re feeling upset about something, you should feel comfortable explaining it to us,” Hwitaek started, as he always did when Hyunggu grew this way. “We’ve told you that before.”

_ “Yeah,”  _ Hyunggu said, exasperated by the conversation already.

“We can’t read your mind, as nice as that sounds sometimes, so you have to tell us when you’re bothered,” Hyojong added, though that was all he ever added, because Hwitaek had drilled it into  _ him  _ at the beginning of the relationship as well. Hyojong was just much more quick to learn and enact said words than Hyunggu was.

_ “I know,”  _ Hyunggu continued lowly.

Hwitaek hummed and slowed down to walk with Hyunggu and Hyojong, nudging Hyunggu’s shoulder and pushing him towards Hyojong, who then did the same and pushed him back to Hwitaek. Already, Hyunggu was smiling, his hands still stuffed in his pockets as Hwitaek nudged him back towards Hyojong, who now took his hands out of his own pockets and playfully shoved him in Hwitaek’s direction.

“Hyuuuuungs,” Hyunggu whined. Hwitaek readied himself to push Hyunggu again, but as he did so, Hyojong reached his hands out, throwing them around Hyunggu’s shoulder and smothering him with kisses on his cheeks, to the temples of his head, along to the corners of his lips, before pushing him back to Hwitaek so he could do the same. Hyunggu erupted into a fit of giggles, Hwitaek peppering kisses across the tip of his nose and the corners of his lips before he pulled Hyunggu into an embrace and kept walking with him.

Really, Hyunggu didn’t have to say anything most of the time. Though Hwitaek and Hyojong made it clear that they liked when he communicated the things that bothered him, at the end of the day, they just... knew. And Hyunggu liked that. He liked that he didn’t have to worry about dealing with his own hesitance to speak his true feelings. 

Eventually, he knew he would have to actually find it in himself to suck it up and really talk about his insecurities, but for now, it was nice to know that neither of them were forcing him. And being smothered in kisses was nice. Really nice, and it helped quell a lot of Hyunggu’s concern about whether or not they really wanted him in the relationship, so it was a win-win situation.

“Ah, we’re almost home,” Hyojong said, his pinkie finger laced with Hyunggu’s own as Hwitaek still held him against his side with one arm. “You know, I think the lady here just got a dog?” Hyojong pointed towards a house near the end of the block. “I hear the damn thing every morning on my way to work.”

“Do you not like dogs or something?” Hyunggu said. Hyojong frowned.

“No, I love dogs, but this thing is like... a furby or something.” Hyunggu laughed, and Hyojong huffed. “I’m serious! It’s got these big buggy eyes, and it barks all the goddamn time.”

“You just sound biased because you have to hear it on the way to work,” Hwitaek said.

“Well, that too.” Hyojong sniffled and looked away from them. “So what?”

“You’re so transparent,” Hyunggu teased.

“I guess it’s not outside this time, though,” said Hyojong, peering over the small fence around the lady’s house. “Doesn’t seem like it’s out pissing everyone off.”

Hyojong had loosened his pinkie finger from Hyunggu’s own to pull his phone from his pocket, as it had started ringing a block back, and he just didn’t want to answer. The second time it rang, he figured he had an obligation to answer, so he lifted it to his ear and trailed a little behind Hyunggu and Hwitaek as they continued the small trek left home.

It happened so suddenly that Hyunggu  _ honestly  _ barely remembered what had happened. He had stuffed his hand in the pocket of his jacket, fingers loosely wrapped around the key ring holding them all together. Hwitaek turned to say something, and then there was this  _ dog  _ right against the white fence of this seemingly calm house. It barked and growled, Hyunggu swore it snarled, and out of instinct alone—

  
  


**

  
  


“You threw your keys?!” Hyojong and Hwitaek said at the same time, Hyunggu nodding quickly and hiding his face behind his hands. “At the dog?!”

“No, not  _ at  _ the dog!” Hyunggu replied incredulously. “I’m not a jerk! I just— just threw it as a distraction!”

“It wasn’t even that big, Hyunggu,” Hwitaek said, tone low and chiding. “It was a chihuahua.”

“It looked huge!”

“It looked huge because you’re a big  _ baby,  _ maybe,” Hyojong said, to which Hwitaek snorted with laughter, and Hyunggu rolled his eyes.

“The both of you are so mean! I was just having a nice time walking home with you two, and then Hyojong was walking behind us on his phone, and this— this dog—”

“It was more like a rat,” Hyojong corrected.

“—whatever it was! It just came outta nowhere and scared me, so I panicked. It ran away, you know!”

“Yeah, probably to eat your keys. Ah, Hyunggu, your story is really the worst,” Hyojong said, and Hwitaek nodded in agreement.

“What?! Mine is the worst? Hyojong left his key in the hands of some random person! Now we have to get our locks changed!”

“I mean, you left yours  _ and  _ our car keys in some random lady’s yard,” Hwitaek pointed out. “Now Hyojong is gonna have to go back there and get our keys back so we can get in the house.”

“Yeah— wait, what?” Hyojong said. Hwitaek shrugged in response.

“How else are we going to get in?” Hwitaek said.

“I don’t want to go back there,” Hyojong replied. “Hyunggu can go back and get them! He’s the one that threw them over the fence anyways.”

“How can you look at this face,” Hwitaek paused to turn Hyunggu’s face towards them, pinching his cheeks with his hands and pulling on them, “and think he’s able to go back and face that scary demon monster dog?”

“Fuck off, hyung,” Hyunggu said, words slurred by Hwitaek pinching his cheeks so intensely. Hyojong huffed, about to protest the fact that he had to go back alone when they heard someone clear their throat from the elevator on the far end of the apartment floor.

“Noona!” The three of them exclaimed at the same time, Hwitaek and Hyojong hopping up from the floor and dragging semi-tired Hyunggu along with them as Heeyoung giggled and hid her smile behind her fingertips.

“Hey, you three!”

“Noona, we have a huge, huge,  _ huge  _ favor to ask you,” Hwitaek said. Heeyoung didn’t appear taken aback in the slightest, or even put off. A knowing grin even tugged at the corners of her lips. Hyunggu glanced down to where Jaehwa was swaddled against her chest, playfully throwing his hands up in the air.

“Hey Hyojong, put your face closer. Maybe Jaehwa will punch you in the face this time.”

Hyojong punched Hyunggu in the shoulder as Heeyoung laughed and reached into the small bag at her side.

“Are you three looking for these?” Heeyoung smiled when Hwitaek’s and Hyojong’s eyes lit up with excitement, and Hyunggu’s with relief. “I found them in Jaehwa’s bouncer the other day, I just haven’t had the time to stop by and give them back! I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay!” Hyojong and Hwitaek chorused.

“How was your family?” Hwitaek said. Heeyoung clicked her tongue and waved her hand.

“Ah, my uncle had some emergency, so we didn’t end up having dinner or anything. It was just a waste of gas, but Jaehwa liked the ride there.”

“No dinner?” Hyunggu said.

“Not even a crumb. It’s okay, though, I’m going to order some takeout and watch movies instead. We rescheduled for next week,” Heeyoung sighed and brushed her hair away from her face. “Did you three have a nice date?”

“Yeah, we’ve just been trying to remember where we all put our keys,” Hwitaek said, rubbed the back of his neck with a nervous laugh. “We all seemed to have misplaced them, except for this one, apparently.”

Heeyoung laughed. “Well, I’m glad I could help! Have a good night now, okay? I’ll see you three around!”

Heeyoung started the short walk to her apartment door, unlocking and opening it with one hand while Hyojong and Hwitaek watched her smile down at Jaehwa. Before either of them could say anything, Hyunggu was already blurting something out, sudden and unplanned, but definitely something all three of them were thinking.

“Noona, do you want company for dinner?” Hyunggu shouted all at once, words running together as Heeyoung turned around to look at them, surprise clearly painted on her face as she hesitated, but only for a second before she grinned widely.

“Ah, you don’t have to do that, it’s okay.”

“As long as we’re not intruding, I think we’d like to!” Hyunggu said. Heeyoung paused again, but nodded easily this time.

“I’d like that!”

Heeyoung walked into her apartment first, leaving the other three to stand in the hallway for a second and gather themselves. 

There were quite a few things Hwitaek would have to do the following morning, like the dishes he planned on doing when they came home, and washing their bedspread, as it reeked like Hyojong’s work. They had to call the landlord about changing the locks, and they  _ definitely  _ would have to stop by that woman’s house in the morning to get their keys back, but... well, in the end, they couldn’t help but smile and laugh it off. Even though they were ready to sleep in the hall just a few minutes earlier, they now had someplace to be, someplace they could relax— all three of them, together.

As they started towards Heeyoung’s apartment, playfully teasing each other on the way in as Hwitaek commented that the ice cream he bought at the corner store had long since melted, Hyunggu made sure to take Hwitaek’s keys from him, promptly stuffing them in Heeyoung’s purse just in case the three of them made any stupid decisions before the end of the night.

**Author's Note:**

> IM ;;;;;;; thank u for reading sldgjdflkgjlfdkjg let me know if u find typos in here i only edited this once I WAS SUPPOSED TO HAVE THIS DONE BEFORE THE 16TH SO IM JUST POSTING IT NOW W/E SORRY
> 
> but thank u for reading and!! taking the time to do so sldkjgdflkgj thank u thank u thank u!!
> 
> talk to me on [twitter](https://twitter.com/iIyssssm) or [tumblr](http://ilyssssm.tumblr.com/)!!


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